Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Section 61 of the Status of the Artist Act, I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the 17th annual report of the Canadian Artists and Producers Professional Relations Tribunal for the period of April 1, 2010 to March 31, 2011.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce a bill entitled “an act to amend the Income Tax Act (golfing expenses)”.

Most golf courses are small businesses that are struggling in the current economy. The bill would help to protect the nearly 350,000 jobs across the country. Almost 1,000 of those are in my riding. Half of those jobs belong to students who are trying to complete their post-secondary education.

The bill would correct a long-standing discrimination against golf as a tax deductible business expense. While taking clients for drinks or to a hockey game are both fully tax deductible business expenses, taking them out to play a game of golf is not.

Golf was once considered an elitist sport with only the wealthiest able to play, but now golf is the sport with the largest participation in Canada, even more than hockey. More than six million Canadians play golf annually.

The game of golf accounts for an estimated $11.3 billion in Canada's gross domestic product, with $1.2 billion in property taxes and another $1.9 billion in income taxes going into government budgets and contributing to all of our other public services.

The bill would recognize the importance of boosting our small businesses and ensuring quality jobs in Canada are maintained in the golfing industry.

This bill will modify the provisions of the current access to medicines regime, which allows Canada to export generic versions of drugs for HIV-AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and other illnesses to developing countries, and it will make the regime easier to use.

This will enable Canadian manufacturers to send potentially life-saving medicines to those who desperately need them.

This bill is an improved version of Bill C-393, which the House passed by a comfortable margin last March but which, unfortunately, died on the order paper in the Senate.

When drafting this bill, I worked closely with the Grandmothers Advocacy Network and the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network. I would like to thank Pat Evans and Richard Elliott for their help.

The bill has already received significant support from all parties in the House. Over the coming months I will be encouraging my fellow parliamentarians to take this opportunity to support lifesaving legislation.

Mr. Speaker, the bill to amend the Income Tax Act as it pertains to volunteers is very important. Right now, volunteerism is growing rapidly and, contrary to what some may say, more and more people are volunteering. In my riding alone, there are 225 organizations that hold over 500 events and create partnerships to help the community and the private sector. There is the Marché de Noël, a volunteer organization that supports small businesses and generates many economic spinoffs. In Repentigny, there is the International Junior Tennis Open, which is an international event.

In total, Canadians do 2 billion hours of volunteer work a year, which is absolutely incredible. What is more, 54% of non-profit organizations and charities are run entirely by volunteers. A total of 12 million Canadians claim to do volunteer work. Statistics Canada estimates the value of volunteer work to be $14 million.

Volunteer work is imperative. The support we receive from people we hold dear, family members and friends, is of great value to us.

Mr. Speaker, today it is my honour to introduce a bill to ensure that every single Canadian has secure, adequate, accessible and affordable housing.

Access to decent affordable housing is not a privilege. It is a fundamental right.

I would like to thank my colleague from Vancouver East, who introduced this bill during the last Parliament, where it died on the order paper. I humbly ask the government and all parties in the House to join me in supporting this bill to improve people's living conditions so that we can make our country fairer and leave nobody out in the cold.

Tom LukiwskiConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons

Mr. Speaker, there have been consultations among the parties and I think you will find unanimous consent for the following motion. I move:

That, in relation to its study on the Review of the Delivery of Front-Line Health and Wellbeing Services for Canadian Veterans, seven members of the Standing Committee on Veterans Affairs be authorized to travel to St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Halifax, Nova Scotia, in the Winter-Spring of 2012, and that the necessary staff accompany the Committee.

Mr. Speaker, discussions have taken place among all the parties and I believe that if you seek it, you will find unanimous consent for the following motion. I move:

That, at the conclusion of today's debate on the opposition motion in the name of the member for Manicouagan, all questions necessary to dispose of this motion be deemed put and a recorded division deemed requested and deferred until Monday, February 27, 2012 at the end of government orders.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to present a petition signed by literally thousands of Canadians.

The petitions call upon Parliament to take note that asbestos is the greatest industrial killer the world has ever known. They point out that more Canadians now die from asbestos than all other industrial or occupational causes combined, yet Canada remains one of the largest producers and exporters of asbestos in the world. They also point out that Canada spends millions of dollars subsidizing the asbestos industry and blocking international efforts to curb its use.

Therefore, the petitioners call upon Parliament to ban asbestos in all of its forms and institute a just transition program for asbestos workers and the communities they live in, to end all government subsidies of asbestos both in Canada and abroad, and to stop blocking international health and safety conventions designed to protect workers from asbestos, such as the Rotterdam convention.

Mr. Speaker, I have a petition signed by Canadians from all across the country who are concerned about the proposed megaquarry in Melancthon Township in Dufferin County, Ontario, which would be the largest open pit quarry in Canada at over 2,300 acres. They are concerned with a number of issues, one of which is that the proposed megaquarry would threaten the Grand and Nottawasaga river watersheds, including various freshwater fish species.

The petitioners are asking the Government of Canada to conduct an environmental assessment under the authority of the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act on the proposed Highland Companies' mega-quarry development.

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Public Safety said this week that people who are against the government's online spying bill stand with pedophiles.

My constituents in the riding of Davenport in the great metropolis of Toronto beg to differ. Along with 80,000 others, they have signed OpenMedia.ca's online petition to stop the government's online spying bill. They wish to add their voice of opposition to the measures contained in the lawful access legislation that would compel telecommunications companies to collect and store personal information and turn it over to law enforcement without a warrant.

Mr. Speaker, I am presenting a petition in regard to the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration's policy decision to freeze the ability of an individual to sponsor his or her parents to come to Canada. The petitioners wish to make a strong statement that what is being done by the minister is met with great opposition in many different communities throughout Canada.

The petitioners ask that the government immediately lift the freeze so that people can sponsor their parents and grandparents in an effort to reunite them with their families here in Canada.

Mr. Speaker, I have two petitions today. The first is a call for Canada to host a conference on nuclear disarmament.

The petitioners wish to quote the International Red Cross:

Nuclear weapons are unique in their destructive power, in the unspeakable human suffering they cause, in the impossibility of controlling their effects in space and time, in the risks of escalation they create, and in the threat they pose to the environment, to future generations, and indeed to the survival of humanity.

For that reason and many others, the petitioners ask that the House of Commons issue an invitation to all states to gather in Canada to begin discussions needed for a global legal ban on nuclear weapons.

The petitioners are from Nova Scotia. I look forward to the minister's answer.

Mr. Speaker, the second petition I am presenting is on the Canadian interfaith call for leadership and action on climate change.

The petitioners point out that global warming is a reality and that while all governments have committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, Canadian levels have been increasing. They say that we cannot wait for others to act but must lead by example.

The petitioners call for a number of measures, such as implementing a binding international agreement, or committing to national carbon emission targets.

I am pleased to present this petition and look forward to the minister's response.